The 55th International Film Festival of India took place from 20 to 28 November 2024 at Panaji, Goa. The theme of this year's festival is 'Young Filmmakers – The Future is Now', so this year a new section and award category 'Best Debut Director of Indian Feature Film' has been introduced in the festival to encourage young blood. The award is a certificate and cash prize of lakh in recognition of young directorial talent from India. The festival screened over 180 international films from 81 countries, including 15 world premieres.
As announced on 11 November, Ashutosh Gowariker an Indian filmmaker served as the chairperson of the international jury, and Phillip Noyce, an Australian film and television director was the recipient of Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award. 15 films competed for Golden Peacock award in main competition. Australia was designated as the 'Country of Focus' at the festival, with seven Australian films screened, highlighting the country's rich storytelling traditions, including indigenous and contemporary narratives. The festival honoured the 100th anniversary of four legendary figures in Indian cinema, actor–director Raj Kapoor, filmmaker Tapan Sinha, actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and singer Mohammed Rafi, through a dedicated tribute program.
The festival opened with Australian film on the life of the British pop star Robbie Williams, Better Man by Michael Gracey. Abhishek Banerjee and Bhumi Pednekar hosted the opening ceremony which was telecast live on YouTube.
The festival closed on 28 November with Dry Season by Bohdan Sláma. Lithuanian drama film Toxic by Saulė Bliuvaitė, was awarded the best film award, the Golden Peacock. Romanian director Bogdan Mureșanu was awarded the Best Director award for the Romanian historical tragicomedy film The New Year That Never Came.
Overview
On 6 September 2024, The National Film Development Corporation of India under Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), organised a Roadshow to kick off the 55th edition of the International Film Festival of India. The Roadshow was held at the NFDC Premises on Pedder Road, Mumbai. On 25 October, the films selected for the Indian Panorama section, along with the juries for the feature and non-feature categories, were announced. A Hindi–language biographical film Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, will open the Panorama section.
The festival is celebrating the centenary of four icons of Indian cinema—actor-director Raj Kapoor, filmmaker Tapan Sinha, Telugu thespian Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and singer Mohammed Rafi with a special tribute program. In its 55th edition, the festival will showcase restored classics from these legends, including Kapoor's 1951 crime drama film Awaara, Sinha's 1976 film Harmonium, Akkineni's 1953 film Devadasu, and 1961 film Hum Dono, highlighting Rafi's memorable vocals. The curtain raiser press conference was held on 11 November, attended by union minister of state for Information & Broadcasting, festival director Shekhar Kapur, Central Board of Film Certification chairman, and other senior ministry officials. It was revealed that the 'International Competition' section has 15 feature films, which will compete for the coveted Golden Peacock and 40 lakhs. Whereas 'Best Feature Film Debut Director' section has five International plus two Indian Films, which will compete for the Silver Peacock, 10 lakh and a certificate. 'IFFIesta’ an entertainment zone, where films, music, and culture converge to enhance youth participation and engagement at the festival will be set up.
Opening and closing ceremonies
Opening ceremony
Abhishek Banerjee and Bhumi Pednekar hosted the opening ceremony which was graced with live performances from Ishaan Khatter and Manushi Chhillar. Sanya Malhotra and Sunny Kaushal brought the history of Indian cinema to life through a musical tableau, spanning from 1913 to the present day. This year's Country of Focus, Australia, delighted the audience with mesmerizing dance performances. The centennial celebrations of Indian cinema legends Raj Kapoor, Tapan Sinha, Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and Mohammed Rafi were honored in the presence of their families, with commemorative postage stamps released in their memory.
Closing ceremony The festival closed on 28 November with Dry Season, a Czech drama film directed by Bohdan Sláma, which focuses on a conflict between two family clans. The ceremony hosted by Samir Kochhar, and attended by director Ramesh Sippy, actor-producer Nivin Pauly, and actor Pratik Gandhi, featured a performance titled 'Rhythms of India'. This showcase celebrated a rich tapestry of dance forms, including Kathak, Garba, Mohiniyattam, Kathakali, Manipuri, and the vibrant Pung Cholam Drummers. It concluded with the Lithuanian film Toxic by Saulė Bliuvaitė winning the Golden Peacock award, while Clément Favreau was honored as Best Actor for his performance in the French film Holy Cow.
Events
Master classes Anupam Kher 23 November 2024 Shabana Azmi 25 November 2024 John Seale 25 November 2024 Phillip Noyce 25 November 2024 Senthil Kumar 26 November 2024 Chris Kirschbaum, Senior Animator for Avengers: Infinity War, 26 November 2024
In conversation: Mani Ratnam 22 November 2024 Nagarjuna 22 November 2024 Panel Discussions: Women Safety and Cinema 21 November 2024 Panelists Imtiaz Ali, Suhasini Maniratnam and Kushboo Sundar, and moderated by Vani Tripathi Tikoo Centenary Special – Celebrating the Life and Works of Raj Kapoor 24 November 2024 Panelists Ranbir Kapoor and Rahul Rawail Centenary Session – The Spectrum and the Soul Tapan Sinha 27 November 2024 Panelists Arjun Chakraborty, Manu Chakraborty and Ratnottama Sengupta
Jury
International Jury
In addition to the Golden Peacock for best film, the Jury decides the winners in the Best Director, Best Actor (Male), Best Actor (Female) and Special Jury Prize categories. The following are the members of the International Jury:
Ashutosh Gowariker, Indian filmmaker, Chairperson Anthony Chen, Singaporean writer-director Elizabeth Karlsen, American–British film producer Fran Borgia, Spanish producer Jill Bilcock, Australian editor
Feature film jury
The Feature Film Jury is headed by Film Director, Actor and Screenwriter Chandra Prakash Dwivedi. The Feature Jury constituted of twelve Members collectively representing the diverse Indian film fraternity.
Manoj Joshi, Indian film, stage and television actor Susmita Mukherjee, Actor Himansu Sekhar Khatua, Film Director Oinam Gautam Singh, Film Director Ashuu Trikha, Film Director S.M. Patil, Film Director and Writer Neelaabh Kaul, Cinematographer and Film Director Susant Misra, Film Director Arun Kumar Bose, Ex HOD of Prasad Institute and Sound Engineer Ratnottama Sengupta, Writer and Editor Sameer Hanchate, Film Director Priya Krishnaswamy, Film Director
Non-feature film jury The Jury headed by Documentary and Wildlife film director Subbiah Nallamuthu, has following six member:
Rajnikant Acharya, Producer and Film Director Ronel Haobam, Film Director Usha Deshpande, Film Director and Producer Vandana Kohli, Film Director and Writer Mithunchandra Chaudhari, Film Director Shalini Shah, filmmaker
ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal jury
Isabelle Danel, France, Honorary President of FIPRESCI - International Federation of Film Critics Serge Michel, Vice President of CICT-ICFT Maria Cristina Iglesias, former head of UNESCO's Cultural Sector Programme Ahmed Bedjaoui, Artistic Director of the Algiers International Film Festival Xueyan Hun, Platform for Creativity and Innovation, CICT-ICFT youth branch
75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow Grand Jury
A. Sreekar Prasad, Editor Deepak Singh, director Charuvi Agrawal, Indian painter, sculptor, animator, visual and installation artist Shankar Mahadevan, composer Samrat Chakraborty, Writing Ravi Varman, cinematographer Mona Shetty, Voice over Shreya Ghoshal, Playback Singer Sreelekha Mukherjee, Actor Sheetal Sharma, costume designer
Web Series jury
Madhur Bhandarkar, Indian film director, script writer, and producer – Chairperson Harish Shankar, Indian film director and screenwriter Rupali Ganguly, Indian actress Krishna Hebbale, actor
Official selection Sections International competition Best Debut Feature Film of a Director Indian Panorama Feature films Mainstream Cinema Section Non-feature films Best Debut Director of Indian Feature Film ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal Best Web Series Award From The Festivals – 2024 Docu–Montage Experimental Films – 2024 Macabre Dreams Accolades – 2024 Cinema of the World Restored classics UNICEF @ IFFI Mission Life BFI@IFFI From The Consulates
Opening and closing films
Year English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s)Opening films 2024Better Man Michael Gracey Australia, United States Indian Panorama feature film2024Swatantrya Veer SavarkarRandeep HoodaIndiaIndian Panorama non-feature film2024Ghar Jaisa KuchHarsh SanganiIndiaClosing film 2024 Dry Season Sucho Bohdan Sláma Czech Republic, Germany, Slovakia
International competition 15 international and Indian fiction feature films competed for the Golden Peacock Award. Highlighted title indicates award winner English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s) Fear and Trembling Manijeh Hekmat and Faeze Azizkhani IranGulizar Belkis Bayrak Turkey Holy Cow Vingt Dieux Louise Courvoisier France I'm Nevenka Soy Nevenka Icíar Bollaín Spain Panopticon George Sikharulidze Georgia, France, Italy, Romania Pierce 刺心切骨 Nelicia Low Singapore, Taiwan, Poland Red Path Les Enfants rouges Lotfi Achour Tunisia Shepherds Berger Sophie Deraspe Canada, France The New Year That Never Came Anul Nou care n-a fost Bogdan Mureșanu Romania Toxic Akiplėša Saulė Bliuvaitė Lithuania Waves Vlny Jiří Mádl Czech Republic, Slovakia Who Do I Belong To Là d’où l’on vient Meryam Joobeur Tunisia, Canada, France, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia The Goat Life Aadujeevitham BlessyIndia Article 370 Aditya Suhas JambhaleRaavsaheb Nikhil Mahajan
Best Debut Feature Film of a Director
This competition category is a platform for upcoming filmmakers from India and abroad and win the Best Debut Director Award. Seven debut films were nominated in this category.
Highlighted title indicates award winner English title Original title Director(s) Production countrie(s)Betânia Marcelo Botta Brazil Bound in Heaven Kun bang shang tian tang Huo Xin China Bring Them Down Christopher Andrews Ireland, BelgiumFamiliar TouchSarah FriedlandUnited States To a Land Unknown Mahdi Fleifel United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Greece, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, PalestineGypsy Shashi Chandrakant KhandareIndia 35 Chinna Katha Kaadu Nanda Kishore Emani
Best Web Series OTT This competition category is a platform for upcoming web series makers from India and win the Best Web Series Award. English title Original title Director(s) Network Scam 2003 Hansal Mehta SonyLIVJamanapaar Prashant Bhagia Amazon miniTVAyali Muthukumar ZEE5Kota Factory Raghav Subbu NetflixJubilee Vikramaditya Motwane Amazon Prime VideoKohrra Randeep JhaNetflixThe Railway Men Shiv RawailKaala Paani Sameer SaxenaDahaad Reema Kagti Amazon Prime VideoLampan Nipun Dharmadhikari SonyLIV
Indian Panorama In Indian Panorama feature and non-feature films of cinematic, thematic, and aesthetic excellence are selected for the promotion of film art through the non-profit screening of these films under different categories.
Feature films